The legacy of Télémache is not its encoded criticism of autocracy, but its characterization of Mentor, whose name entered popular discourse and remains a globally prevalent term in the twenty-first century. The Oxford English Dictionary defines ‘mentor’ as:The word originates from the ancient Greek, Μέντωρ, the name of Telemachus’s guide and adviser in Homer’s Odyssey, and is cognate with ‘mind’, having been formed out of the root ‘mon-’, meaning ‘to remember, think, counsel’. It was Fénelon’s emphasis on the role of Mentor as a counsellor, however, which was key to the currency of the word in English and French. In Télémache, the solitary thinker becomes a trusted adviser through relationship with another, the protégé:These OED definitions describe how the mentor and protégé might functionally relate to each other through the exchange of guidance, but they fail to capture the deep sharing and reciprocity which is inherent to mentoring relationships. As a fictional dramatization of the mentorship which effected such an astonishing transformation in the Duke of Burgundy, Télémache is a moving testimony to the profound transformation made possible through human connection. In the case of their relationship, the Duke embodied the sort of enlightened governance Fénelon hoped would prevail. Much wider political, social, and ideological implications were at stake: a wise and compassionate leader could alleviate poverty, improve education, and ensure justice; he could reconcile the alienated French people to a monarchy they trusted; affirm monarchical legitimacy, and stabilize international relations; provide a model for the rulers of future generations, not just of France, but of the world.